As the search for suspected Trooper shooter Ralph Phillips continues, the PBA appreciates the support that is being given to our members who are tirelessly working to apprehend this escaped convict.

Trooper Sean Brown was shot in his side on June 10 during a traffic stop in the town of Veteran. Thankfully, Brown’s injuries were not life-threatening. He is recovering at home and is hoping to return to work soon.

There is a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Ralph Phillips. If you have any information on his whereabouts, please contact your nearest State Police station.

Below is an editorial published by The Post-Journal newspaper of Jamestown. We thank this newspaper for their understanding of the dangerous nature of the jobs of New York State Troopers.

State Troopers Are The True Heroes

7/16/2006 – Imagine that someone breaks into your home, steals whatever he wants and there is nothing, not one thing, you can do about it. Imagine the breakdown of civilization if thugs were simply free to take what they want and, even, to shoot anyone who might try to call them to account.

That is the ultimate outcome of what is being advocated by those who say the New York State Police are wrong to be so determined to arrest an escaped felon.

Ralph Phillips was a resident of the area before he was sent to prison 14 years ago after accumulating a long history of theft and burglaries. Police have been looking for him since he escaped from prison in Erie County in April. He is a suspect in the shooting of a state trooper in June and is believed to be hiding in the rural and wooded areas of Charlotte and town of Stockton.

As you know, some people complain that police have mounted an extensive manhunt here out of retribution for that shooting, or out of embarrassment that he escaped from jail. A few folks question what they think is the high cost of the manhunt to capture him. Others think only of the inconvenience law-abiding citizens must endure while the intensive police search is under way.

Incredibly, some people talk as if police are the villains and Phillips is a sort of folk hero.

He is not. He is armed and he is dangerous to everyone. He has shown that if you have something he wants, he will take it. That is a key aspect to remember especially since Bucky Phillips crossed a huge line when he became a suspect in the shooting of Trooper Sean Brown. Police know that when a felon is so brazen as to shoot an armed trooper, he presents a grave danger to the unarmed general public, to folks who might inadvertently stumble in his way and be mistaken for a threat.

State troopers are determined to find and arrest Phillips because they know police are the enforcers who protect the orderly and law-abiding citizens against the lawlessness we described above.

Thank goodness they are here.

Thank goodness the men and women of the New York State Police, and of all of the other police agencies in our area, are willing to put on their uniforms, strap on a gun and go to work every day.

To them all, and especially right now the state troopers who have come here to protect us, we give our thanks and unending gratitude.

You are our heroes.